Wow, that's a shame. I've been squeezed pretty hard, to the point that my skin gets so red, but I've never been bruised at all, and I bruise so easily in other regards. What the heck did they do to you?
I had bruises for 2 weeks after my first mammogram. Fortunately, my current HMO does a much better job of things.
Had my 2nd colonoscopy on Monday. The prep was a bit easier this time, although it's always difficult to get through drinking 4 liters of that nasty liquid. They had me do 3 liters the night before and 1 liter at 5am that morning! I don't even want to eat at 5am, so that part was a bit rough. Still, the first time I did this, a nice lady advised me to have mouthwash on hand so that when I took a chug of the liquid, I could immediately swish the mouthwash around to get rid of some of the nasty taste. I think it also distracts my brain from the desire to throw up. Really helps! As does making the jug of liquid as early as possible and putting it in the fridge, so it's as cold as possible. But, seriously, I have to chug each 8oz glass down as fast as I can to get through it.
The actual procedure was no problem and I wasn't terribly nervous this time, since I'd been through this before. Think I got propofol the first time, because the nap was excellent! This time I asked and it was a demerol blend of some kind. Still, I slept through it. Only remember being half awake for about 5 seconds and feeling a bit of pressure and a quick glimpse of the monitor screen. After that, I woke up in the recovery area. Was tired all day, but that's not too unusual for me!
My Dad was my driver this time (a friend did it last time) and he's never had a colonoscopy (he's 72), even though my mom died from colon cancer, which is why I had my first one at 39. He didn't even want to come up to the waiting room! I told him they had to speak with him, so he HAD to come up. After my procedure, they made him come into the recovery room area (not in my curtained area, though) until I was ready to go home. I'm sure seeing all the people hooked up to IVs convinced him never to do it! He's not exactly a tough guy when it comes to medical procedures! Heck, he won't even do the at-home sample test that they send him sometimes. Oh well.
